Sayonara
by LittleRit
Summary: Disorientated. She fought the urge to panic.....Her lungs were on fire....This was it then......you can walk your own mutt jiji. Oneshot.


Ichigo huffed at her hallway mirror one last time, wrapping her scarf round her neck and reluctantly pulling a knitted hat over her ears. Really, why did the world have to be so _cold? _And why on earth couldn't she just stay indoors and curl up in a warm place, purr and sleep? It just wasn't fair! Opening the door and slamming it to show her displeasure at the temperature, she muttered angrily to herself, feet stomping down the path.

"Why? Why? WHY!? Even if I wasn't part cat I still wouldn't want to be out when it's this cold...." She grumbled, clenching and unclenching mittened hands. Stopping to open her neighbours back garden gate, she growled when she found it was frozen in place. Afew angry hisses and one grouchy kick sorted that, and very quickly she was in the back garden, tentatively picking a way towards the house. Knocking on the glass back door, her breath frosting the air in front of her, she was rewarded by the barking of her punishment. **Ryu**.

Really, why did she have to be nice enough to offer to walk his dog?!

Koji's elderly face peered at her round the door, and split into a grin. Quickly, or at least as quick as he could, he opened the door wide and ushered her in.

"Ohayo Ichigo! Thank you so much for walking Ryu for me, you see, I just can't get out when its so cold." Koji called as he disappeared round the corner, searching for the dog lead. The mutt himself, was busy giving Ichigo the wary eye, seemingly deciding whether to chase her or back off. Ichigo hissed quietly at it, smirking triumphantly as the ears lowered pitifully.

"Oh, your welcome." I can't wait till this weather breaks, then you can walk your own mutt jiji. She thought sourly, taking the proffered lead with a forced smile. "Ryu! You little dragon, walkies! " Cue for a pitiful whimper. Ichigo had wonder if maybe she'd overdone the hiss, but she covered it with a forced laugh. "Oh come on!" She grabbed the dog and attached the lead. Sooner this was over, the better.

"Ja ne! We'll be back soon!" She called, being dragged round the corner by a suddenly enthusiastic dog. _The power of the outdoors indeed!_She sniffed, trampling down the path, out the stubborn gate and down the pavement, narrowly missing stray patches of ice. Several cars crawled carefully past, the odd one sliding in the snow. She carried on her unnecessary chatter to the dog, her frown deepening at the clouds her breath made.

"And to think you share the same name as my boss! You are both more trouble than your worth, making me work like a slave...no pay whatsoever!..." She grumbled, rubbing her hands together as best she could whilst Ryu was straining at the lead looped around her wrist. With a huff, she picked up her pace a smidgen, already imagining the humiliation of falling flat on her face. It wasn't fair at all. This was something that Pudding would LOVE to do. Why couldn't Pudding live next door to Koji instead?

A car honked loudly, sliding for several feet before finding grip again, narrowly missing a pile-up with the car infront. It brought Ichigo out of her ramblings with a certain sinking feeling in her stomach. She had just realised, with great dread, that she had to cross the road to get to the park. She could almost feel her cat ears flattening on her head in displeasure.....

"Heh, Daijoubu desu ka Koneko-chan? Your cat ears are out!"

So they _were_ her cat ears - not some ghostly impression. Her hands instantly shot up to cover them as she cringed at the familiar voice. Slowly, oh so slowly she turned round. And low and behold, floating above her, was him. **Him.** Her stupid, overly possessive, obsessive and perverted stalker. Just when she thought the day couldn't get worse!

"Gomen, does that bother you?" Her teeth ground together. "And hai, there _is_ a problem."

"Oh come on Honey, that's getting old." He teased. "I can't always be causing you stress." Ichigo just scowled, turning away from him and tugging the dog on toward the road crossing. Spotting a small gap, she grasped the chance, dragging poor Ryu across as fast as she could manage - and only just missing slipping on some ice.

"Koneko-chan, dozo speak to me?!" she heard him whine. She could almost hear the pout she imagined on his face.

"Iie, sorry. I'm busy." She growled, heading into the park and letting the hyper dog off the lead. Just as she realised the park was strangely empty, she felt his arms wrap around her, effectively immobilising her own by pinning them to her sides. "NYA!! Let go Kisshu!!" She bristled as she felt him nuzzle into her shoulder.

"Maybe I don't want to - you'll just run." He murmured sadly. Ichigo felt herself relax against her will, but she bit back.

"Yes, because I'm faithful. To my mission and Aoyama-kun." It was his turn to bristle. "Can't you realize this? We are _enemies._Thank you for not killing me when you had the chance, but you have to stop this! We can't even be friends unless you all back down, so why do you keep trying?" She pulled herself free from his now limp grip, even suprising herself at the tears in her eyes. "Gomen, gomen nasai, but it must end here. Sayonara," She saw his eyes narrow. "Kisshu." Then she spun round and ran, the tears finally spilling over as her feet followed the deep drifts.

"Sayo...sayonara koneko-chan?" He called. He didn't get it. _She_ didn't get it. He loved her?! How was that wrong? How _could _it be wrong?! Why was she crying?

Ichigo kept running as best she could, shivering as her legs sunk knee-deep into the drifts. She then realised why she was out in the cold in the first place. Her tears instantly stopped in her panic. Her head was flung from side to side as she tried to spy the dog, who seemed to have miraculously blended his chocolate coat perfectly with the snow. Her breath came in gasps that clouded the air as she began to worry. She couldn't have lost him! She couldn't! She'd be dead meat to feed it with when it came home otherwise.

"RYU!!!!" Hopefully it came to call, unlike another Ryou she knew. "_RYU_! Here boy!" She prayed. Stumbling to a halt, she drew in a deep breath before calling and calling him.

"**RYU!!!!**"

Her eyes widened, a scream died in her throat, her hands froze where they were cupped around her mouth. Out on the frozen lake, Ryu was padding happily, unaware of the danger he was in. He threw himself down to roll in the snowy covering. "Oh . my . gosh. RYU!!!!" His ears pricked up, he went to look up.

There was a terrified yelp mixed with the crashing sound of ice, dog and snow being dumped in the water. Ichigo was rooted to the spot, only beginning to run a second later when her brain remembered how to reconnect to her body. Sprinting as best she could to the edge of the lake, she paused, crouching down. She could feel the hairs rising on the back oh her neck, and could feel her cat ears reappearing to flatten in distaste. It couldn't be helped though.

Ichigo began to half crawl, half wiggle her way across the ice on her front. It was several metres out before the cracks began, and a metre or so after that before the large hole. She gave a quick sigh of momentary relief as the dog resurfaced, and reached out her arms to try and pull him up onto the fragile ice. Her hat, face, scarf and arms became soaked with icy water as she tried to help the terrified dog. She felt tears spring to her eyes once more as his icy claws tore her cheek, and felt them spill over from the bitter cold.

"Please. Oh please, come on Ryu, get out!" She raspingly begged, prayed, as she tried to help. She wriggled further forward and wrapped her arms around him, ready to pull him out.

Ichigo barely had time to register the crunching, groaning sound of the ice before she was plummeted into the water. Everything in her body seized-up as the sub-zero water engulfed her. She couldn't breathe. She couldn't move. Hell, she couldn't think!

Ichigo somehow realised she had let go of Ryu, but she couldn't see for the bubbles around her from her thrashing. Already she could feel her teeth beginning to chatter, her skin starting to shiver. She tried to look up, but all she could see all round was solid white, she couldn't see the hole she fell down. Disorientated. She fought the urge to panic, feeling her now water-logged clothes dragging her down. Clumsily she shed her hat and gloves, trembling blue hands trying to undo her coat. Her lungs were on fire with the need for oxygen, bursting with the need to expel the waste air. Only three buttons to go!

Her vision began to fade.

The pressure on her ears was excruciating. Her legs were like dead weights, her arms and hands were just too cold to do anything but shake, the muscles unresponsive to anything but reflex. This was it then. She couldn't hold on any longer. Ichigo let the panic take over, and the air raced from her lungs. Naturally her body tried to replace it. As she felt the knifes stabbing her from the icy water inside, she couldn't decide if her lungs were freezing over or burning up. She could only let one thought take over as she faded into unconsciousness. Sinking lower and lower into the darkness. In her hopeless state she half fancied she heard her name being called, but it was like ice in the desert. Impossible.

_I'm sorry. Sayonara._

* * *

**Hello readers.**

**So this is my first ever Tokyo Mew Mew Fan-fiction. The idea came to me afew weeks ago and so I wrote it down. I'm not sure if I've really done it justice or not, but I am relatively pleased with it. I couldn't seem to get it much longer without babbling on, so if anybody has any tips for that then I would be very grateful, as lengthening my drafts tends to be my weakness.**

**I suppose I never mentioned if the voice she heard was real or not, or if she survives and if she does, who saves her. I guess I would like people to believe what they want to happen, not to have it all written out. So I hope you don't mind.**

**I found the Japanese on fan-fictions, some of it is what I've picked up by reading so many. I've tried to make it so it will make sense whether you understand it or not.**

**Hope you enjoyed reading,**

**Ritakna**


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